Ruth P. Morgan faculty papers

A Guide to the Collection

Ruth Morgan joined Southern Methodist University as an assistant professor of political science in 1966, was promoted to professor in 1974, and served as Provost from 1986-1993. This collection includes correspondence, invitations, subject and reading files, miscellaneous, restricted administrative files, and her meeting notes and calendar. Although these records cover Dr. Morgan's faculty career, the majority of the files reflect her years as Provost.

Ruth P. Morgan was born in Berkeley, Calif., in 1934, but her family moved to Austin, Texas, in 1939, when her father joined the University of Texas faculty. She spent her summers on the family's wheat land in the Texas Panhandle, where she learned that reading would exempt her from participating in chores. She carried this studious penchant with her to the University of Texas at Austin and graduated summa cum laude. Morgan received her master's and doctorate degrees from Louisiana State University in 1962 and 1966. Her academic specialty is in the American Presidency.

Ruth P. Morgan came to Southern Methodist University in 1966 as assistant professor of political science. She taught several courses including the American presidency and modern political thought. Her skills as an academician and pedagogue were recognized by both her colleagues and pupils, and she was twice named SMU's outstanding professor. From the first time she set foot on the campus, Dr. Ruth Morgan was actively involved in improving and developing SMU as an institution. While professor, she served as president of the Faculty Senate.

In 1978 she joined the provost's office and her talent for managerial and administrative tasks proved priceless. She quickly climbed the ranks in this office. In 1986 she was named interim provost to fill the position left by William B. Stallcup, Jr., and in 1987, SMU's ninth president, A. Kenneth Pye, made the appointment permanent. Morgan served an efficacious and diligent six years as provost and stepped down from her post in 1993.

In the provost's office she held a number of positions including chair of a steering committee on self-study and program review. As provost, Dr. Morgan helped update the school's academic program by increasing requirements for science, language and writing. She also established interdisciplinary programs in international and ethnic studies, as well as doctorate programs in both psychology and physics.

Dr. Morgan is provost emeritus and professor emeritus of political science at Southern Methodist University, and her published works include The President and Civil Rights: Policy-Making by Executive Order, 1987, and Governance by Decree: the Impact of the Voting Rights Act in Dallas, 2004.

The Ruth Morgan faculty papers reflect her life as an academic. The correspondence is organized by date and includes both faculty correspondence as well as official correspondence as Provost. The correspondence series is almost half of the collection. The subject files encompass the wide variety of projects that a provost oversees, and it is a rich source of information about general SMU events.